I get the feeling that people on the right might need to be talked off of the ledge this morning. I'd really like to comment on the election as I watch the numbers come in. Something very funny is going on here, but I want to be careful what I say until I analyze the evidence more. I want to see the data. It isn't just what happened on election night, it's what certain political figures and talking heads have been saying for a few months leading up to the election. The stage was set for what we are witnessing long ago.
However, I want to talk about this sense of entitlement that the Democrat and Republican parties seem to have. Our country allows third party candidates on the ballot if they reach certain thresholds. There are people who feel like the system is rigged to make it difficult for third party candidates, and I agree. Third party candidates, even if they're on enough ballots to potentially get the electoral votes needed to win, are marginalized so badly that they won't win. In my humble opinion, that's by design.
However, the reality is that most ballots will have third party candidates listed with the two major party candidates. People who are informed enough to make decisions will do their research into every candidate. I know there are people who believe that going third party is a protest vote. If you're doing that, it has been suggested that you're taking away from one of the established parties. They will say that you're throwing your vote away. I can't tell you how strongly I disagree with that sentiment. While there might be people who simply vote third party as a protest, there are people who vote that way because they believe in what that candidate stands for.
Because of the nature of how close an election can get in any individual state, the margin of victory between one candidate and another may be the difference that the vote total for a third party candidate received. In other words, we've seen the Democrat party suggest that Green party candidates cost them the win. There was a lot of that talk in 2016. People blame Ross Perot for costing George Bush Sr the win in 1992. They pretty much say that type of thing every year now.
Lately, I've witnessed this mentality more from Democrats, but both parties are guilty of it. They feel a sense of entitlement to the votes. A few of the states going in favor of Joe Biden are seeing him win by a margin that is less than the total of votes that went to Libertarian candidate Jo Jorgensen. This has Republicans crying foul and saying she cost Donald Trump the win. I'm going to call BS on that, just as I called BS on the Hillary Clinton supporters who blamed Jill Stein for her loss.
Let me spell it out here one more time, for those who don't think so well. The major party candidates get all of the TV time. They get the newspaper time and you even see their ads when you watch videos on the internet. Therefore, you get a good glimpse of what they stand for. If that hasn't moved a person to vote for either one of them, that's the fault of the major candidates. A voter has a right to educate themselves and vote for whomever they choose. If they vote Libertarian or Green, it's because that's their choice. The Republicans and Democrats are not entitled anybody's vote. They must earn it.
I'll go so far as to say the establishment should take a look at what the Libertarian party is doing and understand that more people are looking at them. 1.6 million votes when the leading candidate gets 70 million votes doesn't seem like much, but this party would struggle to get 400,000 for a few elections as they established themselves. In recent elections, they've hit 1.4 million, 4.4 million and now almost 1.7 million and counting. Their message is getting out more, and it's impressive when you consider the media outlets barely give them the time of day.
In my opinion, the Libertarian party has more than earned a seat at the table to have their ideas considered. If the media would give their platform a chance and more people were informed, who knows how many votes they would get. They are at a disadvantage as it is and don't have much of a chance. I don't think the Democrat party would necessarily disagree with letting the Libertarians be heard as they might feel like those are votes taken away from the Republicans. However, the Green party is getting closer to a time when they should be considered as well. They are on enough ballots as it is.
What that means is the two major parties will work together to keep the other two parties at a disadvantage for as long as they can. The Democrats will support the Republicans in keeping the Libertarians down as long as the Republicans offer the same support in keeping the Green party down. They will fight to keep it that way for as long as they can. Whether either of the two major parties might work behind the scenes with the other two parties in certain swing states is subject to speculation. However, no party is entitled to anybody's vote. If your candidate lost, ask yourself why they didn't inspire more people to vote for them.
